Calorie Intake Confusion :(

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spyder_rose
spyder_rose Posts: 193 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Okay, so I have fallen off the bandwagon a bit lately. I'm usually quite good at sticking to my "diet" (eg. I have a lot of allergies, but have recently been eating foods I'm allergic to and feeling very ill and lethargic, as well as bloated to say the least!) so.... once my holiday is over (next week) I am going to STICK TO IT. BUT: I thought I'd do some research as to my calorie intake so that I am eating the right amount so that I can lose the last few kilos...

A bit of history for you: I'm 26, female. Australia. Desk worker. 4 foot 8 (143.5cm) and currently 43.5kg (95.7 pounds).. I want to get down to 40kg (88 pounds) but also build some muscle/strength...

I have an underactive thyroid and some blood issues... and recently diagnosed with elevated prolactin (MRI results pending for a pituitary tumor), so my body is against me losing weight at the moment *but no excuse for me to be going crazy with the calorie intake and bad food choices!!!

So, I did some research online about calorie intake if I want to lose 0.5kg (1.1 pounds) a week... Different sites/calculators are saying different amounts... ranging from 800 calories a day to 940... now, eating under 1200 calories is meant to be bad for you... so I calculated what I should eat just to maintain my weight, without any weight loss and it said 1207 calories and one said 1400 (to maintain)... WTF... !!! So to lose 0.5kg I need to limit my intake by 500 calories a day for the entire week... but this is kind of difficult. Even when I do a heap of exercise (for me - ie. running , I only burn maximum 200-500 calories... and I'm positively exhausted and SORE the next day... but I don't want to STARVE myself?!?!?!

Any thoughts on what I can do? Any hints? Or am I just going to take a longer time to lose the weight by being extremely disciplined with food and doing as much exercise as I can manage?

Replies

  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,834 Member
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    I would say you are definitely at a healthy weight range for you're height & to stop focussing on scale numbers. If you want more "tone" (I hate that word) then eat around maintenance level or even slightly above and focus on building strength.

    NOT a good idea to eat 500cals a day.
  • ByrdMessy
    ByrdMessy Posts: 94
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    I'm not a Dr. but my instinct is to say maintain until you get your results back at least. Focus on eating as healthy as you possibly can and worry about losing weight later. Do you know your BMR and TDEE?
  • spyder_rose
    spyder_rose Posts: 193 Member
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    According to MFP my BMR is 1038 calories...

    Not sure about TDEE??

    Chris: I couldn't eat 500 calories... I'm always going over 1200 as it is :/
  • silvereyes6
    silvereyes6 Posts: 17
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    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/538381-in-place-of-a-road-map?error_user_id=12389372&error_username=silvereyes6&hl=in+place+of+a+roadmap

    I found this info helpful, but can't boast any results yet as I just recently upped my calorie intake
  • Larry0445
    Larry0445 Posts: 232
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    Go on this site,and compare you BMR,with MFP. I would trust this more than MFP. You can also check your TDEE.

    http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/bmr-calculator.html
  • spyder_rose
    spyder_rose Posts: 193 Member
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    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/538381-in-place-of-a-road-map?error_user_id=12389372&error_username=silvereyes6&hl=in+place+of+a+roadmap

    I found this info helpful, but can't boast any results yet as I just recently upped my calorie intake

    OMG. Am I dumb? I'm completely confused when reading this... :/
  • spyder_rose
    spyder_rose Posts: 193 Member
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    Go on this site,and compare you BMR,with MFP. I would trust this more than MFP. You can also check your TDEE.

    http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/bmr-calculator.html

    According to that site, my BMR is 1206 and my TDEE is 1448...
  • kimlim4113
    kimlim4113 Posts: 1 Member
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    my advice is to try and stay as close 2 1200 cals a day. Any less and you will definitely be under nourished! Losing weight takes patience, especially when ur really close to ur goal weight! good luck :smile:
  • ironanimal
    ironanimal Posts: 5,922 Member
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    Go on this site,and compare you BMR,with MFP. I would trust this more than MFP. You can also check your TDEE.

    http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/bmr-calculator.html

    According to that site, my BMR is 1206 and my TDEE is 1448...

    Well, that's a bit better. If you deduct 10% from your TDEE (ala 1267) you will lose weight (science dictates so) at a sensible rate, given you are close to your goal anyway. You can elevate your TDEE to give you more room to maneuveur by increasing your activity level as well.
  • Denjo060
    Denjo060 Posts: 1,008
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    bump for later
  • alli_baba
    alli_baba Posts: 232 Member
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    I'm confused, too. From your note, it sounds like you exercise -- right? Or wrong?

    Because I inputted your info into the online calculator mentioned in this thread (the fitfrog.com one) and the only way I got to your 1448 TDEE number is if you did absolutely no exercise.

    If you are like me and have a sedentary work life but exercise a couple days of week, you should probably choose "Moderate" for activity level. Then you would get a TDEE of 1872. If you were to focus on losing weight with a 20% deficit of TDEE (which I've seen recommended the most) that would leave you with around a 1500 calorie daily goal (and daily deficit of 372).

    So, if you are exercising, you may want to include that in your calculations. Good luck!
  • treetop57
    treetop57 Posts: 1,578 Member
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    Go on this site,and compare you BMR,with MFP. I would trust this more than MFP. You can also check your TDEE.

    http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/bmr-calculator.html

    According to that site, my BMR is 1206 and my TDEE is 1448...

    That means that if you eat 1200, you have a 250 deficit . . . which should translate into a 1/2 pound a week loss (about 1/4 kg a week). For someone your size, that's probably about as fast a loss as is possible while remaining healthy.
  • silvereyes6
    silvereyes6 Posts: 17
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    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/538381-in-place-of-a-road-map?error_user_id=12389372&error_username=silvereyes6&hl=in+place+of+a+roadmap

    I found this info helpful, but can't boast any results yet as I just recently upped my calorie intake

    OMG. Am I dumb? I'm completely confused when reading this... :/

    Yeah, not worded in the simplest way perhaps... basically it's the same info people are replying to you with already. I had to message the OP for some clarifications myself though hah.
  • spyder_rose
    spyder_rose Posts: 193 Member
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    Cool. Thanks heaps everyone.

    I'll just try to exercise when I can and stick to my non-allergy dietary requirements and calorie intake from the TDEE.

    See how I go!
  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,834 Member
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    I'm confused, too. From your note, it sounds like you exercise -- right? Or wrong?

    Because I inputted your info into the online calculator mentioned in this thread (the fitfrog.com one) and the only way I got to your 1448 TDEE number is if you did absolutely no exercise.

    If you are like me and have a sedentary work life but exercise a couple days of week, you should probably choose "Moderate" for activity level. Then you would get a TDEE of 1872. If you were to focus on losing weight with a 20% deficit of TDEE (which I've seen recommended the most) that would leave you with around a 1500 calorie daily goal (and daily deficit of 372).

    So, if you are exercising, you may want to include that in your calculations. Good luck!

    Agree with this.

    BMR & TDEE calculators should be used as estimates. Set you're intake & then work out what you're actual maintenance is. (and just because you're not losing scale weight does not mean that that is you're maintenance e.g. I thought mine was 2100 until I upped my intake to 2500-2600 and still maintained weight)

    And SCREW THE SCALES!

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